1. Technical Field
This disclosure is directed to electronic systems, and more particularly, to loopback testing of interfaces.
2. Description of the Related Art
For many electronic systems and devices, the manufacturing process concludes with one or more types of tests to ensure proper functionality and operation within specified limits. The types of testing that may be conducted are wide and varying, and may be suited to the particular system/device. Furthermore, testing may in some cases be conducted by external equipment, such as an integrated circuit test system, while in other cases self-tests may be conducted. In the latter case, integrated circuits and/or electronic systems may include one or more mechanisms built in for the conduct of such self-tests, commonly referred to as BIST, or built-in self-test. BISTs may be combined with other types of tests.
One type of test that a BIST may be used with is a loopback test. Loopback tests may be used to test interfaces to integrated circuits or electronic systems. To implement a loopback test, one or more transmitters configured to transmit data from the interface may be coupled to corresponding receivers of the same interface. Signals transmitted on the interface may “loop back” to the receiver for subsequent analysis to determine if the interface is functioning correctly.